I had this post ready to schedule to post on Christmas Day. However, I had to go to the Emergency Room because my stoma with the ileostomy prolapsed. They sent me home but now worse. Please pray for the doctors to agree to treat me if needed, and for my parents and I to have the wisdom and knowledge we need. All that to say, I am especially thankful for this Christmas and even in the hard I was able to have some quality time with the family which is a huge blessing.

Anyways, I hope you enjoy this post and it helps bring joy and peace to your day. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and yours.

Holidays have always been a favorite of mine, especially Christmas. I’m thankful to have grown up in a home where my parents were an example of Jesus’ love to me every day. Over Christmas they always focused on making sure I understood the importance of the season and as I’ve matured over the years the Christmas story means more to me now than Ever.

As I’ve been pondering on the Christmas story, I am so thankful and humbled by all of the people God used to help us experience His love, forgiveness, and Eternal life.

Each time I read the story I am always challenged and encouraged by Mary. Her willingness to obey the Lord and to trust God with the task given to her was amazing. While we do not know much about Mary, or have in depth evidence of her thoughts and actions, she was a young teenager and one can somewhat imagine what her struggles might have been. Being human I am sure she had her moments of “why me,” “what will people think,” “ how am I going to deal with this opposition, and convince Joseph and the family of my faithfulness, etc.” But regardless of the challenges she was met with, and there were many, she put God and her obedience to Him above all else. She responds to the Lord’s calling by stating, “May it be to me as you have said.” I love that statement and it has
been especially important in my life lately.

God is giving me so much comfort, peace, and joy. Being home bound there are many lonely days — days where I feel misunderstood, forgotten, or see no end in sight. But the hope of Jesus and the little ways He encourages me, agets me through the next step, then the next,etc. Those are the best gifts. Believe me the peace, strength, and joy that I am given each day from this bed is not from my strength but is all from God’s strength and healing powers.

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” ~Luke 2:10-13

“Who can add to Christmas? The perfect motive is that God so loved the world. The perfect gift is that He gave His only Son. The only requirement is to believe in Him. The reward of faith is that you shall have everlasting life.” ~Corrie Ten Boom

“Mary pondered these things in her heart.” Luke 2:19
We will never know exactly what thoughts Mary had on that first Christmas so long ago.

The angel had told her that she had been chosen. She knew that the angel had appeared to Joseph, too. She had confirmation from Elizabeth, but the Bible doesn’t tell us about those months between that visit and Bethlehem.

Just because of the time in which they lived, those months were probably very difficult for Mary and Joseph. Mary was pregnant before her marriage and Joseph had accepted her and went ahead with their marriage. Then came the census and the travel to Bethlehem. Traveling by foot and donkey would have been difficult to say the least, but doing it nine months pregnant – no way!

They get to Bethlehem and it is so crowded. Realizing that Mary is in labor, they must have been frantic to find a place to stay. The only thing available was a stable.

There in that stable – Mary gives birth. While we like to think about all those paintings of a serene Mary holding a bouncing baby boy, it would not have been like that. Labor is hard and it is bloody. Mary and Joseph would have both been exhausted. They probably really needed a bath and a hot meal.

I wonder – that night – did they lose sight of the angel’s promise? The promise that this was God’s Son. My first thought is – not Mary and Joseph – they knew, they had seen the angel.

God has promised us all to be with all of us, to never leave or forsake us, but when hard times come – and they always do – it’s easy to lose sight of God’s promises. It’s easy to look around and just see cows and think “where is God in this?”

Yet, unknown to Mary and Joseph over in a field outside Bethlehem, there are some shepherds. They are just minding their sheep when an angel appears before them. The angel tells them all about Jesus and his birth. Suddenly, there’s a whole host from heaven praising God.

While Mary and Joseph are in a barn having one more difficult day in months of difficult days, over the way, in a field, the shepherds are having church!

I wonder – if Mary and Joseph had been thinking “Am I sure I got this right? The Messiah is being born in a stable with just a manger for a bed?” Then here comes this band of shepherds busting into the stable, telling their own story of angels. Just when the night seemed the darkest – God sent some shepherds!

That first Christmas night, when the Savior of the world was born and God gave us all the greatest gift – light shining in the darkness. What was Mary doing? She was pondering all those things in her heart.

This Christmas, let’s do some pondering. In the midst of difficult days, let’s remember a baby born in a manger.

About the Author –

I’m Amelia’s auntie.
I’m a wife to Lewis and a Mom to Jonathan and Greg. I’m Nena to CJ, Lexi, Emily, Harper and Stella. I’m also a monster-in-law to Jamie and Suzanne.
I love Jesus!
I love a good book and Hallmark movies!
I love a happy ending!

When I was a child, my mother came up with a simple but creative way to help me count down the days to Christmas. She strung a long piece of ribbon across the fireplace within my reach and taped Hershey Kisses to the ribbon, one for each day through December 25. My excitement built each day as those shiny, red-and-green foil wrappers filled with chocolatey sweetness dwindled in number. To this day, I’ve continued the tradition, and a Hershey Kiss will always taste like Christmas to me, any time of year.
Those little Hershey Kisses were a shadow of a deeper truth. The Advent season is a time of waiting expectantly. Through all of history since the Fall, God’s people have waited for deliverance. God had promised a Redeemer since our first parents disobeyed. The prophets foretold his coming for centuries, and while those ancient promises echoed through four hundred years of prophetic silence and foreign oppression, God’s people still waited.
The silence was broken by a baby’s cry in a tiny, nondescript town in the Roman Empire. On the surface, it was ordinary. This was what they had been waiting for? Isn’t that often our response after a long period of waiting for something? When we forget God’s sovereignty, faithfulness, and love, his answer can seem disappointing because it’s not what we expected. Sometimes we even miss it or, worse, despise and discard it. After long periods of unfulfilled desire, prayer, and anticipation, we miss the glory, grace, and goodness of God’s redemptive work because it comes in unexpected packaging.
Advent teaches us to expect great things of our great God. We go about our daily routines in an atmosphere of eager anticipation for the joys of Christmas Day, and that should reflect a deeper anticipation as we look for God’s redemptive purposes in the common and unexpected events he providentially sews into our lives because we know they are part of a greater story.
Two thousand years on, the church still waits for another promise to be fulfilled, but this time the glory will be obvious. We have small tastes of it here, like those foil-wrapped chocolates, in the channels of grace he has given us in his Word, his Spirit, and his church. Although we can’t count down the days, that promise, the sure hope of his return, reminds us that when God seems silent and distant, his plan has not failed.

About the Author –

Bethany Wester a life-long Floridian who enjoys deep conversation, good books, classic movies, traveling, and Florida State football. She is passionate about Jesus, learning the truth of God’s word beside other women, and caring for women and families involved in unplanned pregnancies. Today is her parents’ 46th wedding anniversary, and she’s indescribably thankful for them.

Christmas at Grey Sage (Gilead Publishing, October 2017)
This Christmas, there’s plenty of room at the inn.
Nestled in the snow-covered Sangre de Cristo Mountains near Santa Fe, the Grey Sage Inn looks like the perfect place for weary travelers to escape the craziness of the Christmas season. There’s plenty to see in historic Santa Fe during the day, and the inn’s owners, Maude and Silas Thornhill, are happy to spend their evenings hosting this year’s guests from across the country.
But an unusual snowstorm throws a wrench in the festive mood. The sprawling inn becomes close quarters as stranded guests discover this Christmas won’t be the relaxed vacation they expected. Tension and fear mount as the storm worsens, and Silas, a retired doctor, is called away in the middle of the night to care for a neighbor. The snow and stress unlocks tongues–and in the unexpected conversation that follows, secrets and pasts are revealed, and hearts are healed.
In the midst of snowdrifts and fireside conversations, of tales of days gone by, the warmth of Christmas brings a renewed hope as these trapped strangers become friends–proof again that the joy, hope, peace, and love of Christmas can be experienced no matter where you are.
Learn more and purchase a copy.

My Thoughts:

I’m a sucker for Christmas books and this is no different. I’m the girl who starts reading Christmas Fiction, watching Christmas movies, and listening to Christmas music in October. This book is a delightful read and filled with a variety of characters snowed in at an inn over the holidays. It is both heartwarming and funny and is a book that can be easily read in one sitting. If you are looking for a festive book to read over Christmas break, add this to your list.

I was given this copy from Litfuse to review.

About the Author:

Phyllis Clark Nichols grew up in the deep shade of magnolia trees in Georgia and weaves her Southern culture into character-driven stories that explore profound human questions. She is a classically trained musician and enjoys art, books, nature, cooking, travel, and ordinary people. After retiring as a cable network executive, Phyllis began leading mission teams to orphanages in Guatemala and now serves on three nonprofi t boards, where she works with others who are equally passionate about bringing hope and light to those who need it most. Phyllis and her husband live in the Texas Hill Country.

When Amelia asked me to write a guest blog post about a favorite Christmas memory or story, I confess that I had a hard time coming up with an idea. Not because I don’t love Christmas, I do….. but I struggled to find the sort of undilutedhappy memory I thought she might be looking for. So I gave up and wrote what was in my heart.

Christmas has inspired its own genre of relentlessly happy movies, music, and novels. The Hallmark channel plays endless loops of cozy Christmas movies, and romance novelists are urged by our agents to crank out an annual Christmas novella.

And yet….most of those novels and movies are utterly forgettable. They are the literary equivalent of cotton candy, and just as filling. I think this is because most writers aim for the obvious when they write a Christmas story: the cozy settings, the loving family, the sentimental reunions, the adorable kids.They are light, fluffy, and predictable.

Now….I challenge you to think of a Christmas novel or story that blew you away. My hunch is that the story you picked probably had some very dark themes in it. Let’s have a look at the short list of Christmas stories that can truly be called “classics.” I think you will be able to see plenty of darkness:

It’s a Wonderful Life is about a middle-aged man whose disillusionment with his bland life has led him to the brink ofsuicide. The recent classic, Love Actually, is chock-full of broken marriages, widowhood, loneliness, and unrequited love. O’Henry’s The Gift of the Magi is about an impoverished couple struggling to show their love for one another, and Santa Claus doesn’t appear to with a bagful of goodies at the end. Charles Dickens’ classic, A Christmas Carol, is about an old man reflecting on his lost humanity and wasted life.

Despite the weighty themes, all of these stories end with a radiant sense of optimism. I don’t believe you can have a truly powerful Christmas story without that contrast between dark and light. It is through enduring loss or disappointment that we appreciate the gift of light. Christmas comes at the coldest time of the year, and it’s a brief moment to gather together and celebrate what really matters. In How the Grinch Who Stole Christmas (another gloom-infused story, friends!) the villagers lose all their presents and external decorations, yet still gather to sing praise. It is a recognition that in the midst of long winter nights, hardship, and disillusionment, the gifts of humanity should still be celebrated. For Christians, we rejoice in the immeasurable gift of our Savior…. a man whose own life was one of struggle, suffering, but also joy.

So as we gather together to celebrate the good things about Christmas, it’s okay to acknowledge the dark in our lives as well. Many of us will be lonely at this time of year. We have illness, financial setbacks, and other roadblocks in our way. We can’t have a true appreciation of joy without them.

Elizabeth Camden is a research librarian at a small college in central Florida. Her novels have won the coveted RITA and Christy Awards. She has published several articles for academic publications and is the author of four nonfiction history books. Her ongoing fascination with history and love of literature have led her to write inspirational fiction. Elizabeth lives with her husband near Orlando, Florida.

Hi friends. So happy to have Angela Hoover guest posting again for me on the blog. Below is one of her favorite recipes that is perfect for the holidays:

The following recipe is from my absolute favorite the drop-dead gorgeous, decadent cook, Nigella Lawson.

I am not even a big banana person and everyone in my family LOVES these muffins.

When my son was little, (7 or 8) he tried these for the first time. When I asked him what he thought of them, he looked at me with a serious face, rolled his eyes to the back of his head, and fell back toward the wall. A success.

Whenever I make these muffins I have to make a double batch because 12 of them get gobbled up in 2 hours.

The recipe calls for butterscotch chips, (the recipe is called butterscotch banana muffins) but I use semi-sweet. These little darlings are buttery (even though there’s no dairy) and not too overly sweet. This recipe is one of the first recipes I would make with my kids. Easy to make and I usually have all the ingredients right in my pantry. Hope you enjoy.

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Hi friends. Welcome to my website. I am a southern girl who belongs to Jesus, and seek to glorify Him daily. I currently reside in NC with my sweet dog Lucy. I am a writer and speaker and enjoy sharing about what God has done for me. Read More…